The Industrial Revolution: The Women's Suffrage Movement

Women in the nineteenth century lived in a time characterized by gender inequality. At the beginning of the century, women could not vote, could not be sued, were extremely limited over personal property after marriage, and were expected to remain obedient to their husbands and fathers.( women’s suffrage movement 1) In most situations, the men would have to go to work and bring home the money, and the women would have no choice but to stay home, clean the

The Industrial Revolution was a period of industrial and urban growth in America during the 18th and 19th centuries. This period marked a transition from an agrarian based system, to one focused exclusively on economics and commodity production. Industrialization introduced innovative technology and the formation of factories would ultimately change how goods and materials were made. During the American Revolution, women were responsible for in-home production that aided the war effort, using their production as a means to contribute publically. As America transitioned from this period into the period of the Industrial Revolution, these widened roles became more restrictive, women were no longer producers, they were consumers, and it was not a common practice for women to work outside of the home. This generated an opportunity for women to challenge newly forming gender ideals in which women’s societal expectations were constructed according to the masculine majority and falling outside of these expectations was deemed inappropriate. The Industrial Revolution prompted an enlightenment period in which gender ideals suggested that men were intellectually superior to women and this perceived superiority helped to influence distinct public and private spheres of influence for both men and women and presented the idea that women had a specific set of virtues to uphold according to the “cult of true womanhood.”

The Industrial Revolution was a catalytic period that redefined the means of production. This revolution started in Britain in the 1760s and spread throughout Western Europe and North America until the 1840s. The new inventions made workers go from making a product by hand to watching a machine make it for them. At a glance, one might assume that the revolution only influenced the production line. However, with deeper analysis, one can say that the revolution influenced female suffrage. Firstly, there were major differences in gender roles before and after the revolution occurred. For instance, before the revolution, males were primarily the wage earners, whilst females worked more domestically: clothing trades, teaching, and nursing.

Back in the mid 1800’s the first women’s convention was initiated by Elizabeth Stanton, along with others who founded the Women’s Suffrage Movement. After attending an World Anti-Slavery Society meeting, where the women were required to sit is a separate area away from the men, the women decided that they were little better than slaves and decided to do something about it. (Pearson, 2017)

Many women believed that the right to vote would improve their position among everybody. In Europe, the most vocal and active women’s movement was the British Women’s Movement, which was divided mainly into two groups. The first group was organized by Millicent Fawcell, who believed that women must demonstrate to Parliament that they should have the right to vote. Along with Fawcell, Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughters, Christabel and Sylvia founded in 1903 the Women’s Social and Political Union. The main actions of this group was to call to attention the media and use of unusual publicity stunts to get their attention. These women used forceful tactics to get their message heard by pelting government officials with eggs, chaining themselves to lampposts, smashing out windows of department stores, and burning railroad cars. Even though these women did these daunting tasks only in Finland, Norway, and some American states allowed women the right to vote before 1914. Another topic that was important to women besides the right to vote was peace movements. A famous women became the head of the Austrian Peace Society, who was Bertha von

The industrial revolution swept through Europe and North America during the 19th century, affecting the class structure, economy, government, and even the religious practices of everyone who lived in or did commerce with these new "industrialized nations." It made the modern age possible, but it was not without its "growing pains." The position of women before the industrial revolution was often equivalent to chattel, and then as now, they were expected to take naturally to housework and child rearing. The history of working women in the Industrial Revolution is rife with accounts of abuse and tragedy, but overall it improved their position in capitalist societies. Below, I will explain the

In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, many European women were still struggling for basic rights such as choosing who they married, obtaining full citizenship and having the right to vote. Because so many women were fighting for the same thing, many formed groups or alliances that were designed to fight against the male-driven political parties that wanted to deny them their rights. As the “woman question” became a bigger deal in politics and society, people began to form stronger opinions about whether or not they thought women should be allowed to vote. The eighteenth century in Europe began a revolution on the topic of women’s suffrage. An overwhelming amount of feminist groups argued for women’s suffrage and fought against

The movement for women’s suffrage began well before the Progressive Era, in in the 1820’s, when women joined groups that wanted reforms. This was a difficult time for women to have a voice because they were mainly seen as property and should

The Women’s Rights Movement is very popular, and tracing back through the extensive history of all the powerful women the world has had, we learn that one important starting point was during the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution is was “the transition to new manufacturing processes in the period from about 1760 to sometime between 1820 and 1840 (Powell 2017).” The revolution introduced new ways of manufacturing and selling goods. New machinery, ways of thinking, and factories were prevalent during this time period- as well as the introduction of women working in large-scale locations. Before

The development of new appliances gave women the ability to have much more free time on their hands than usual. Women want more real jobs in the world instead of staying at home all day. Organizations like the GFWC helped women escape “boredom at home” p.223 during their newly acquired freetime from the appliances that houses have now. It was very difficult to get into colleges for women and like Anna Shaw, sheer determination could get them in. The fight for women's suffrage was finally moving along, and with groups like the Women’s Party, women were able to make their cause more

The Women’s Suffrage Movement The Women’s Suffrage Movement was an act by a society of women called suffragists who fought for the right to vote and run for office in all parts of the world. Unofficially, the movement actually started in 1848 when the first women’s rights convention was held in Niagara Falls. In Canada, the movement started in 1878 officially with Dr. Emily Howard Stowe being the leader, and ended in 1940 when Quebec finally gave women the right to vote. The movement was non-violent in Canada, more like a quiet demand, whereas in Britain it often turned violent and riots broke out constantly. The Women’s Suffrage Movement allowed women to be considered “persons” by law and provided them the right to vote and run for office.

The Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) was an organization found by Emmeline Pankhurst their purpose was to campaign women’s suffrage in the United Kingdom as this lasted from 1903 to 1917. The Women’s Social and Political Union was

Social change in Britain has been achieved primarily through the hard work of organized political groups. These groups created events to recruit and educate supporters of social equality to join them in fighting for progress. The Women’s Suffrage Movement between 1866 and 1928 in Britain is no exception to this trend. The reason for the great efficacy of these political groups, including the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies and the Women’s Social and Political Union, was the women who pioneered the groups and fought alongside them to create the change that they believed in. The goal of these political groups was finally realized in 1928 with the passing of the Representation of the People Act. However, the Women’s Suffrage Movement in Britain would not have been successful without the influential actions of several significant women. In addition to the overall necessity of female leadership for British Women’s Suffrage, the central efforts of Millicent Fawcett, Lydia Becker, and Emmeline Pankhurst particularly played a large role in the movement’s success.

     Throughout the history, women were being discriminated against by ignoring or not paying much attention to them when it comes to dealing with political issues. One in particular, was the controversial issue regarding women’s right to vote. By the end of the 1880’s feminist movements did not meet their expectations due to lack of support from women themselves. “ If by the end of the 1880’s the suffragists had reached something of a stalemate, by the end of 1890’s and early 1900’s the movement had entered a completely new phase. This was largely the result of new factors in the situation: the growth of support for women’s suffrage amongst women themselves, and the increasing importance of the labour movement in British politics” (Banks, p.121). For these women, voting was becoming more like a powerful tool to be recognized in the society and understand the importance of voting and to also participate actively in the campaign. Women suffragists finally reached their goal, in which women at the present are getting more involved in politics by running for office and being leaders of the society. One good example is present senator Hillary Clinton. This former first lady is one of the top senators in the United States today. She fought

Since the beginning of the 1800's, women had been fighting for the rights that they wanted. Women should be able to vote, control their own property and income, and they should have access to higher education and professional jobs. Women also had many roles in society. Women had very important parts in jobs as they took up more responsibilities. Girls, young ladies, and women of all ages were working harder to bring home income. Most women thought the pay and the conditions were unfair. These arguments grew as women fought more and more for social equality.